Improvement in gate-latches



t NITED STATES PATENT QEETCE.

SAMUEL M. TINKHAM, OF TAUNTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO S. M.

TINKHAM '& SONS, OF SAME PLAGE.

IMPROVEMENT'IN GATE-LAT'cHEs.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent N o. 183,5 l 8, dated October 24, 1876; application filed September 18, 1876.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, SAMUEL M. TINKHAM, of Taunton, Bristol county, Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement 'in Gate- Latches, of which the following is a specification: f

My invention relates to improvements in gate-latches; and consists of a metallic case that is secured to the gate, and provided With a pair ot' latches hinged to the case aforesaid, which latches project upward, and each is provided in its upper end with a pin or side projection, on the under side of which a lever, provided with thumb-pieces onthe outside of the case, is made to act simultaneously on both of the latch projections as soon as the said lever is pressed downward or raised upward in either of its projecting ends. p

This arrangement is a great advantage over ordinary latches, as some of the latter require the lever to be pressed down, whereas other kinds require the lever to be lifted up, for the purpose of opening the gate to which they are attached 5 and it is, therefore, sometimes v difficult to open gates provided with the ordinary latches. The lever aforesaid is resting loosely in the case, and has its fulcrum in either end of the latter', according to whether the lever is pressed down or lifted up in either of its ends. I

The latches close on the catch by their own gravity as soon as the operator lets go the hold on the lever. A suitable catch is used in the ordinary manner, and secured to the gate-post in the usual Way.

On the drawings, Figure l represents a top view of my invention. Fig. 2 represents a front elevation of the same, with the cover d detached, so as to show the internal construction of my invention; and Fig. 3 represents a cross-section on the line A B, shown in Fig. l.

Similar letters refer to similar parts wherever they occur on the different parts of the drawings.

a a represent the latches, hinged at b b to the case or frame c, as shown. d represents the front plate or cover for the case c. Each latch a a projects upward as a bent arm, a a', and is provided each in its upper end vwith side pins or projections a" a, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3. e represents the lever by which the latches are. operated. This lever rests loosely on the fulcrums c c in the opposite ends of the case c, and it projects in each end outside of 'the said case as thumb-pieces e e', as shown in Fig. 2. The lever e is made to move freely up and down in the slotted openings clll c above the t'ulcrums c c in the case c. The lever e is provided with recesses e e, as shown in Fig. 2, resting loosely on the fulcrums c c', as shown.

The full lines in Fig. 2 show the levell e at rest and the latches closed upon the catch f; but the dotted lines in the same figure show the location ofthe lever andthe latches'when the lever is either raised or pressed down in either end for the purposeof disconnecting the latches from the catch f.

At the junction between each latch a and its upright arm a is made a projection, a" a", by which, and a projection, c, on'the case c, the said latches are prevented from dropping down too far out of the casco.

AThe operation of my invention is as follows: Press down or lift up the thumb-piece e of either end of the lever e, in either case in which the lever e is raised on' one or the other ofthe fulcrums c c', and thus, acting upon the under side of the latch projections a a, the y latches a a are simultaneously lifted up and relieved from the catch f. The latches and lever close down by their own gravity as soon as the operator lets go its hold on the latter.

What I Wish to secure by Letters Patent, and claim, is

The herein-described latch, consisting of the latches a a, with their uprights a a and pins a a, hinged at b b, in combinationA with the lever e e e and the case c, with its fulcrums c c', as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony that I claim theforegoingv as l my own invention I have affixed my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

SAMUEL M. TINKHAM. Witnesses:

JOHN D. DEAN, JACOB OETH. 

